A multi-chamber system that is semiconductor processing equipment has been known. The multi-chamber system includes a plurality of semiconductor processing rooms and a load lock room. Each of the semiconductor processing rooms and the load lock room is connected to one transferring room through a gate, and a transferring apparatus is arranged in the transferring room. The transferring apparatus takes wafers from the load lock room and the semiconductor processing room, transfers the wafers to predetermined substrate placing positions of the next semiconductor processing rooms, and places the substrates at the substrate placing positions. The semiconductor wafers transferred to the substrate placing positions are subjected to a predetermined process treatment and then further transferred by the transferring apparatus to the next substrate placing positions. As the transferring apparatus, a transferring apparatus including two hands disclosed in PTL 1 is known, for example.
The transferring apparatus of PTL 1 includes a turning link and two hand mechanisms. The turning link is rotated by a revolution drive mechanism. Arms of the hand mechanisms are attached to the turning link so as to be rotatable. Hands of the hand mechanisms are attached to the respective arms of the hand mechanisms so as to be rotatable. The arms of the two hand mechanisms are connected to corresponding hand drive mechanisms through corresponding arm belts and the like. Each of the hand drive mechanisms is configured to move the arm belt to rotate the arm. The hands of the hand mechanisms are connected to the corresponding arms of the hand mechanisms through corresponding interlock mechanisms. Each of the interlock mechanisms is configured to operate in accordance with the rotation of the arm of the hand mechanism to rotate the hand. Each of the hands of the hand mechanisms is configured to be able to hold the wafer.
According to the transferring apparatus configured as above, while rotating the turning link by the revolution drive mechanism, one of the hand drive mechanisms rotates the hand mechanism corresponding to this hand drive mechanism such that the hand of the hand mechanism faces in a direction that substantially coincides with an opening direction of the gate. Thus, the transferring apparatus transfers the wafer held by the hand. With this, the wafer and the arm of the hand mechanism can be prevented from contacting the gate.